Claptone’s Performance at 45 East in Portland [Reviewed]

This last Friday Claptone kicked off our holiday weekend when he came to 45 East in Portland. We had been waiting for him to come back to Oregon after What The Festival this last summer, and he did not disappoint. House fans took over the venue for a night of dancing, drinks and masks. Local support Gabriel Driscoll and Vincent de France started the night off doing a great job of setting the mood for a night of house music.

Making our way into the venue, security got us in from the cold quickly, and through out the night the bartenders were attentive. 45 East has been going through some changes recently, and they seem to be well received. The venue did a good job of getting the audience in the mood for Claptone, who is known for his gold mask and white gloves. The first 100 people to arrive received a mask like Claptone. Throughout the venue there were all different types of Claptones. For it being a few days before Christmas, the show brought in a crowd of a few hundred with good energy.

The transition from DJ to DJ was smooth and easy. When Claptone hit the stage, he didn’t have any grand entrance. He spoke through his music his whole two-hour set. He truly is all about the music, and his set showed that. He seemed to get more and more comfortable as his set went on, which in turn made him move/dance more into the night.

His set was a nice blend of old and new school. He did an awesome job of getting the audience and himself dancing. His focus was always on the audience and making the best set for them. One special fan got to keep Claptone’s glove when he threw it out to the audience before his last two songs. At this time he thanked and showed his appreciation for the audience. After his last song he quickly left the stage. To be honest we didn’t even see him leave.

We have been patiently waiting for Claptone to make his way back to Oregon after closing out What The Festival this last summer, and his set got us dancing. The audience, openers and Claptone all did awesome. It was the perfect night to kick of the holiday weekend. We hope to see Claptone again soon in the Northwest!